


Carpool

by Far_Beyond_The_Universe



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Aged Up, Gay Keith, Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Kinda, M/M, Meet-Cute, Office AU, Pizza Date, Real au, Taylor - Freeform, anxious keith, background hunay, background shirtis, bi lance, is - Freeform, is that even their ship name?, keith is pining, klance, lance is pining too, not canon, not graphic sex, shiro x curtis - Freeform, they're probably in their mid-twenties
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-05
Updated: 2019-01-05
Packaged: 2019-10-04 13:39:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17305589
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Far_Beyond_The_Universe/pseuds/Far_Beyond_The_Universe
Summary: Keith has just begun working at Voltron INC when he's offered a spot in his coworkers Carpool. It doesn't take him long to realize he's head over heels for the driver.





	Carpool

**Author's Note:**

> My first fic of the new year! This has been one of my favorite things to write so I hope you enjoy it. I actually wrote it while I was at work lol.
> 
> I also realized that I tend to write fics pretty much solely from Keith's POV even though Lance is my real fav of the two (sorry bud)... I'm going to try and write some Lance POV stuff coming up so if you have suggestions and ideas please let me know in the comments.

Day 0

“Hey, you’re Keith, right?”

The other man was taller by a few inches and had darker skin. Keith looked up from his phone and met blue eyes, startled that someone was already addressing him in such a familiar manner only a day after starting work at Voltron INC.

“Uh, yeah,” he hoped he didn’t sound as antisocial as he feared.

“Where do you live?”

Keith blinked, desperately trying to remember the name of the other person. Certainly he’d been introduced earlier that day, but there had been so many faces and he just couldn’t remember them all. Maybe it was Taylor? That sounded right… he’d roll with it until told otherwise.

“Um, over on Shoreline?”

“I thought so! Why don’t you join our carpool?” Taylor was practically radiating energy.

“Oh, I drive a motorcycle...”   


“Even better! You won’t need to worry about weather or wind messing up your hair or outfit then, plus you’ll be helping save the planet. There’s an open spot in my van, it seriously wouldn’t be a problem.”

Keith really didn’t know what to say. He liked riding his motorcycle but the other guy made a good point about it making it easier to get to work looking presentable.

“Seriously, when I say carpool it’s really just me driving a bunch of my friends in my van. Just pitch in for gas every once in a while; otherwise it’s pretty chill.”

And, Keith thought, it would be a good opportunity to make friends.

“Okay,” he gave Taylor his address and the other guy promised to be there at 7:30 sharp.

 

Day 1

“I thought you said this was a carpool,” Keith said, slipping into the passenger seat of the old minivan. “Or am I just the first stop?”

“Actually, you’re the only other one I’m driving today. It’s the most random set of circumstances that have lent themselves to this scenario. Normally Kaltenecker is packed to the brim,” Taylor patted the dashboard as if it were a living animal.

“Kaltenecker…?”

“The name of my car. Something this magnificent needed a name.”   


“And you settled on Kaltenecker?”

“Hey, it’s a good name.”

Keith smiles to himself. “So where is everyone else, then?”

Taylor launches into describing the people who normally ride in Kaltenecker with him every morning:

“Hunk is my roommate. He doesn’t actually work at Voltron, but his cafe is on the way so it’s easy enough to drop him off. He’s been feeling out of it lately and finally took the day off to catch up on sleep. Then there’s Pidge-- I don’t know if you met them yesterday, they work in IT?”

Keith isn’t sure if he’s met them, either. Again, far too many names and faces and they’ve all bled together.

“They literally just moved to the midnight shift. Honestly, it suits them better, but morning carpool just won’t be the same. And sometimes I drive their brother, too, Matt, but he works from home most days; he’s also in IT but the stuff he deals with can be down from anywhere I guess. Honestly, technology is like magic to me, it just doesn’t make sense. Allura is out of the country at the moment, visiting family abroad. Lucky duck, that one. Although she only takes the carpool occasionally; I have to practically drag her to come with us.”

“How come?” They’re almost to work now; it really isn’t that bad of a drive but he wonders what it will be like when the rest of the crew join them. He’s getting a little anxious thinking about the crowd.

“She likes to get to work early. Honestly overworks herself, but she has a good heart. I wish I could be as motivated as she is. But this keeps her from spending all her time at Voltron, so I think it’s healthier for her. And, then, last but not least, normally I pick up Shiro as well, but he’s in LA for the weekend on some business trips. I’d say lucky duck to that as well but he hates the west coast.”

The name Shiro is the only one to ring a bell. Keith considers it for a moment and then nearly spits out the sip of coffee he had just taken. Shiro as in… “Our boss, Mr. Shirogane?!”

Taylor just chuckles, “Don’t call him Mr. Shirogane outside of work, it makes him uncomfortable.”

Keith just leans deeper into his seat, wondering if it’s too late to opt out of these carpools. 

 

Day 5

Actually it’s not that bad. None of it is. Being picked up by Taylor (he’s still not sure if that is the other man’s name but he’s too embarrassed to ask at this point and everyone in the car is so familiar with each other that they rarely, if ever, use first names) is a nice treat since they’re becoming fast friends. So far he’s met everyone but Pidge and Allura, though everyone has been pleasant. Even riding in the car with Mr. Shirogane-- Shiro-- hasn’t been awkward. 

What’s particularly nice is when Taylor insists that Keith always sit in the passenger seat, declaring it’s because “He has nicest face (besides my own, of course)”. 

 

Day 13

Keith is only panicking a little. He’s gotten comfortable with the carpool and he’s gotten comfortable around Taylor… but he still doesn’t know if his name is Taylor and he almost slipped up. He needs to find Taylor’s desk or something, and hope that there is a name plate. Or… he can ask one of the other passengers but that also strikes him as incredibly embarrassing. 

He spends the day snooping around the building instead of doing work. He thought he recalled Taylor saying his desk was near Shiro’s office but as far as he can tell the only desk near Shiro’s office is occupied by his secretary, a quiet girl with short blond hair and a lot of freckles. .

OK, maybe he can ask the secretary. Keith approaches and they share a smile and he thinks he’s in the clear because she has no reason to think Keith  _ should  _ know Taylor’s name when--

“Keith, what brings you to my neck of the woods?” Shiro’s voice rings out from over Keith’s shoulder. He turns and sees Shiro coming up the hallway, smiling.

“Oh, eh,” Keith stumbles for words.

“Ina, this is Keith, he’s part of the morning carpool.”

Ina’s smile widens, “Ah, Takashi’s spoken about you. Only good things!”

“Right, right,” and now Keith is caught because his only reason for being over here was to figure out if Taylor’s name is Taylor.

Okay may as well be out with it because he really needs to figure it out. It’s been practically two weeks riding in the carpool, which is a ridiculous amount of time without knowing the driver’s name.

“This is super embarrassing but, um, is the carpool driver’s name Taylor, by chance?” Keith winces at his own question.

Shiro stares at him for a long moment and then lets out the most genuine laugh. It’s so genuine that Keith has a hard time believing Shiro might be laughing at  _ him _ but he can’t imagine what else he would be laughing at. 

“Wow, is that what he told you?” Shiro wipes a tear of glee from the corner of his eye. “You know what, he’d be thrilled that you thought his name was Taylor; he’s been trying to convince people that’s his nickname for some stupid reason. But no, ha, his name is Lance. Don’t worry, I won’t tell him, mostly because I don’t want to encourage him telling people his name is Taylor. But yeah, Lance. Lance McClain.”

And Keith smiles, holding the name close in his mind because he finds the name fits Lance really well.

 

Day 26

It’s a comfortable pattern. Wake up, get ready, see Lance and his other friends, work at probably the best job in his entire career, see Lance again, and do whatever at home.

That pattern is about to be broken by Friday night shenanigans, which is what Lance has dubbed the first friday Pidge has had off since starting their late shift. 

Keith has only met Pidge once, and it was only for a few moments when they helped him with his computer. They’re a genius, that’s for sure, since they practically brought it back from the dead. He has to agree with Lance on the idea that technology is like magic in that he doubt he’ll ever be able to understand or control it.

“I’m thinking pizza-- because friday nights and pizza go as well as peanut butter and jelly-- at Baked? Unless they’re too crowded and then I guess we could go to Cellar, except the pizza is so greasy there,” Lance is detailing the itinerary for the night for the entire car, which consists of Hunk, Matt, Shiro, and Keith.

The other three are nodding along in agreement but Keith is still new to town (well, okay, relatively new; he’s just a hermit most of the time) and doesn’t actually recognize the names of any of the restaurants. If Lance likes it, though, then Keith has a feeling he’ll like it.

“And then bad movies at Hunk’s and mine until we get bored and start another popcorn fight OR we bring back the bracket for Injustice and see who the new champ is.”

Hunk votes for bad movies while the other two cheer for Injustice while Keith has a mini anxiety attack realizing he never was officially invited to any of these events and since it’s for Pidge, a person he doesn’t know well at all, he’s not sure if he’s wanted there or not. But then Lance, as always, comes to the rescue:

“What do you think, Keith? Bad movies or Injustice?”

“I’m okay with either. I’ve never played Injustice, so I don’t know if that’ll sway anyone,” but Keith is incredibly pleased because, yes, he counts that as an invitation even as his brain tries to convince him that Pidge may still not want him there, not knowing him and all that.

“Never played!” Matt is gaping from the back seat. “Even more reason to bring the bracket back.”

“That’s just because you want to pretend like you’ll have a chance with a newbie,” Lance scoffs.

“Okay, no fair. Have you ever seen Quigley?” Hunk demands.

“Um no, no I can certainly say I haven’t seen Quigley. I haven’t even heard of it.”

“Then we have to watch it! It’s an experience.”

“I have to agree with Hunk there,” Shiro says. “Watching Quigley is a very important part of being in this friend group. I can’t wait to see your reactions to it.”

“Fine, then, we’ll do both, compromise. No movie marathon- just Quigley and then an Injustice bracket,” everyone riding in Kaltenecker agrees and Keith smiles into his jacket collar, incredibly pleased, even if Quigley already sounds like a nightmare.

…

Lance pops out of Baked and confirms everyone’s fears: they’re pretty full and for a group their size (besides the regular crowd both Hunk and Shiro brought their significant others-- Hunk’s girlfriend, Shay, is really sweet, and Shiro’s boyfriend Curtis has a killer sense of humor). Pidge, who at work seemed grumpy and as if he had kept them from doing something more important, is actually a ball of energy and containing them is a tad difficult. 

Lance shakes his head and stands next to Keith, “They’re not going to have seating for the eight of us for  _ at least _ another hour. Cellar it is,” he says sadly.

Everyone launches in the direction of Cellar but Keith stays in the back with Lance.

“Is it really that bad?”

“No, actually, it’s pretty good, just greasy.. Honestly, I’ll probably get the pasta-- which is a good decision because it comes with  _ the best  _ garlic knots (except for my ma’s). Besides, nothing beats Baked, am I right?” He nudges Keith and Keith, who’s practically touch starved, though he never would have described himself that way only a few moments ago, revels in it.

“Haha, I guess, I’ve never been to Baked, either.”

Lance stops dead in his tracks. “Wait, what? Oh my god I forgot you barely get out. Okay, okay, everyone turn around we’re gonna go to Baked!”

“Is there a table open?” Shay asks.

“Keith has never been there!” Keith’s face goes red as all the attention switches to him.

“Lance, it’s really not worth waiting an hour for,” Shiro says kindly. He’s holding hands with Curtis and as weird as it is to think of his boss as being cute with his boyfriend, he really does think they’re a cute couple.

“I think it’s totally worth it,” Lance is, as ever, stubborn.

“It’s really okay, I can go another time,” Keith says, his voice quieter than he would prefer, but he’s never been one for the center of attention.

Lance looks like he’s going to continue fighting it but with a glance at Keith takes the cue to drop it. “Alright, fine,” and they all continue walking again. “Hey Keith,” Lance puts his hand on Keith’s arm and if Keith thought that a nudge was something wonderful, a full hand on his arm is a freaking miracle. And much appreciated. “I’ll take you to Baked, promise. You’ll love it; best pizza in town.”

…

Quigley isn’t the stuff of nightmares, but it will still probably haunt his dreams. It was, he can agree with everyone else, one of the best bad movies he’s ever seen since he couldn’t stop laughing the entire time. He sat in one of the bean bag chairs on his own even though he really wanted to sit next to Lance on the couch, but he thought that might be pushing it.

Injustice turns out to be a superhero game, though only Pidge has played the single player campaign. Everyone else is solely familiar with the multiplayer aspects, which involve picking a DC hero or villain and then fighting your opponents character, like street fighter. The bracket they were all referring to earlier involved everyone picking three characters and then putting them into a bracket to see who came out on top.

Keith lost his first two-- Green Arrow and Catwoman-- easily, as he was still getting used to the game. But apparently button mashing was the way to go and somehow he actually came out on top of the game when he played Nightwing. It was intense, the final round between him and Shiro, who was playing as Bane, but in the last ten seconds of the match Keith smashed away at the controls and was crowned the new champion.

Matt, who had lost all three of his characters in the first few rounds, was pouting in the corner, but not seriously upset.

It was late, even for a Friday, and people started leaving tso Keith followed.

“See you Monday, Keith,” Lance said when he saw Keith to the door. Shay was staying over the night and she and Hunk waved goodbye from where they were cuddled up on another of the bean bags.

“See you Monday, Lance.”

 

Day 40

The only person Keith hasn’t met yet is Allura. But judging by the pretty, silver-haired girl sitting in his regular passenger seat he guesses he’s about to.

“Keith, this beautiful, gorgeous, glowing princess, is Allura! I’m so glad you finally get to meet her! Sorry, even your pretty face fales to compare to her radiance,” Lance laughs at the introduction and Keith takes a seat in the back of the car.

Allura seems really sweet and he’s able to make small talk with her easily; it helps that Lance and Hunk are there and then other’s get in soon as well.

All day at work, though, he can’t help that empty pit in his stomach that had formed when he saw the way Lance and Allura interacted.

_ Of course he doesn’t like you like that, _ he told himself sadly; he closed his eyes hard, shutting out the world and probably looking constipated in the process. But if anyone noticed his mood, they didn’t say anything.

 

Day 53

“We still haven’t gone to Baked,” Lance sits across from him in the lunchroom. Keith rarely takes his break there, but the expiration date was coming up on all his microwavable meals and he hates to waste anything. “Are you busy tonight?”

It’s so sudden and unexpected, especially considering whatever closeness they had had a couple weeks ago had started to fade thanks to Keith pulling himself away from Lance after Allura entered the scene. He knew it was a bit petty but it was mostly out of his control; he hated the thoughts that accompanied time spent growing closer to Lance since they kept up a mantra of  _ foolish foolish stupid he’s not into you _ .

But Keith can’t say no to this boy. “I’d love to go.”

…

Keith completely expects Hunk and/or Pidge and/or Allura to be going with them but Lance drops everyone off (even going back home to drop Hunk off) and it ends up just being the two of them.

They decide to share a large pepperoni pizza and when the server brings out the pizza Keith gives it a glance. It really doesn’t look all that appetizing; it looks like a Chuck E Cheese pizza, honestly. Lance reads the look and laughs, cutting Keith a huge piece and giving him the plate.

“It’s delicious, I swear. You definitely won’t regret this.”

Keith bites into it, careful because it’s hot and because of how it looks.

His eyes widen in surprised bliss: “Oh my god,” he practically moans around the food. He thought that only happened in fiction.

“I told you!” Lance cheers and digs into his own huge slice. 

Both boys are completely content and actually finish most of the pizza before they are able to even open up a conversation, though Keith barely noticed the silence. He was enjoying have Lance’s undivided attention for once and he was enjoying the dinner.

But Lance leans back and eyes Keith carefully. 

“Hey, bud, is everything okay?”

Keith swallows. He could guess what Lance means but…

“I, just, we… you’ve seemed rather distant lately,” Lance keeps his attention focused directly on the pizza.

“Oh.” Right, he should answer that; have a better answer than ‘oh’. “Well… I think…” Nope, nope, Keith has no answer at all for this. “I’m good, really. I’m sorry I’ve seemed distant. I guess I’ve just been a bit lonely lately; I’m still new to the area and don’t have many friends.” Oh, that slipped out.

Lance blinks up at him and Keith can’t read the expression beyond that Lance is listening honestly and taking in what Keith said.

“Then we should definitely hang out more. Because we’re friends, right?” Hope in his voice.

Keith lights up. It’s out of his control. Lance just manages to light him up like a Christmas tree. And Keith definitely didn’t miss that the ‘we’ seemed to imply just the two of them. “Yeah, we’re definitely friends.” He’s definitely wishing they could be something more.

“Good, because I like spending time with you.”

Keith lets himself read into those words even though he knows that Lance can’t possibly mean what Keith wants him to mean. But the conversation is natural from there. They share work gossip (Lance certainly knows a lot more than Keith does) and Lance demands that Keith tell him all about the places he  _ has  _ been in town so that Lance can take him to all the actually good places. Keith expects Lance to judge how much of a loner he’s been lately, staying at home and just watching Netflix or reading library books, but Lance brushes it off and promises that Keith will get the VIP treatment. 

They get up and pay and they get in Kaltenecker so that Lance can drive Keith home. He almost--  _ almost _ \-- invites Lance in but what would they do? Keith isn’t prepared for guests and while he’s completely unpacked at this point he never had many possessions and it looks absolutely bare in there.

The conversation does dry up in the car and Keith searches for a good piece of small talk. What do friends normally talk about? 

“So, you and Allura, huh?” Keith raises an eyebrow and hopes it comes off as natural; he’d tried to pick a topic a platonic male friend might talk about with another platonic male friend.

Lance laughs, “Oh no. No no no. I’ve known her for ages and like, a million years ago I had the  _ hugest  _ crush on her, but, like, that never would have worked out. I mean, have you seen her? Plus, she’s British. Probably royalty (though she’s never admitted it to me). And I grew out of the crush when I realized she’d never see me that way and we’ve been good friends ever since. But, yeah, no. No significant other at all, actually,” this last bit he says a little shyly. “What about you? Got an SO back where you came from?”

Keith’s heart is galloping in his chest but he keeps his voice steady. “No, nope. It’s been awhile since I had a boyfriend, actually.” And, yes, he slips in boyfriend to see what Lance’s reaction will be.

Lance concentrates on pulling into the parking lot of Keith’s apartment building.

“Well,” he says when he stops the car. “Here’s to both of us. Hopefully we’ll both be lucky in love sooner than later.”

Keith doesn’t know what to say to that. Certainly not the reaction that he was expecting, okay,  _ hoping  _ for. But he laughs because Lance is certainly still in a really good mood; that’s a genuine smile. “Yes, hopefully.” He gets out and waves goodbye as Lance drives off. 

 

Day 56

It’s 10pm on Sunday night when Keith gets the call from Lance.

There’s a moment of panic because there’s no good reason to call your work friend at 10pm and something must be wrong.But there isn’t really any good reason to call your work friend at 10pm, even if it is an emergency. 

He answers.

“Oh thank god you’re awake,” Lance’s sigh of relief is audible. “Hunk’s out of town and you were the first person I thought of but then I thought there’s no way he’ll be awake this late I mean he always seems so fresh in the morning…”

“Is everything okay, Lance?” Keith cuts him off because as cute as the ramble is he’s still panicking a little.

“Sorry sorry, yeah, well, no, but yeah. My car died in the Walmart parking lot and I was wondering if you could come pick me up?”

“Of course! You know I have a motorcycle, though, right? I mean, I have a helmet you can use, but not much room if you were grocery shopping,” Keith could kick himself for that. Stupid, stupid, he’d do anything in his power to make sure Lance’s stuff got back with him.

“Dude, seriously, you’re a life-saver. No, I just needed some small stuff. It all fits in my pocket. Seriously, Keith, I’m so grateful you have no idea. What would I do without you?”

“I’ll be right there.”

…

Keith spies Lance huddled on the bench in front of the Walmart. He also spies Kaltenecker amidst the mostly empty lot.

“Hey,” Keith stops in front of Lance, motorcycle idling.

Lance’s smile is bright and clear. For someone stranded at a Walmart in the middle of the night he’s taking this particularly well. 

“Seriously, thank you thank you thank you,” he takes the helmet Keith offers him. And then he sits behind Keith and puts his arms around Keith’s waist and Keith has never been warmer or happier in his entire life. “Is this okay?” Lance asks.

“Actually, you probably need to hold a little tighter. Ever been on a motorcycle?”

“Nope.”

“Okay, then definitely hold tighter. And don’t worry about holding too tightly, you won’t hurt me.”

“I trust you,” Lance says, tightening his grip around Keith’s middle.

The ride is quick but Keith enjoys the entire thing. Lance is a warm, real presence against his back. The wind is whipping around them: chilly but not cold. It feels like freedom. And Lance also seems pretty happy with it. It’s over too soon.

“Thanks again, Keith. I don’t know what I would do without you,” Lance hands him back the other helmet.

“Called another friend?” Keith jokes, but he’s seriously happy that Lance had thought of him first.

He watches to make sure Lance makes it into his house okay.

“Shit!” Lance exclaims. And then he’s dashing back to Keith. “Okay okay okay don’t kill me but… I think I forgot my house keys in Kaltenecker. Could we…?”

Keith just laughs because it’s as if someone up there is listening in on his deepest thoughts. “Sure, it’s no problem.”

“Cool. Dude I owe you so much. Like, five whole pizzas.” And then Lance pats his pocket and his face drains of color. “Okay okay okay you’re really gonna hate me.”

_ I could never hate you _ . “What’s wrong?”

“I think I locked my car keys in the car.”

…

They go back to the Walmart to double check but yeah, Lance did lock his house keys and his car keys in his car and Hunk isn’t back in town until Tuesday.

Which is how Lance ends up staying the night at Keith’s.

And, yes, Keith is completely embarrassed by the way his apartment looks but Lance barely glances around. If anything he looks as if he feels out of place. So Keith says something to try and make Lance comfortable:

“You were bound to come to my home one of these days; make yourself comfortable.”

Wow, that sounded a lot more like he meant something completely different than he did (although he did kinda mean what it sounded like…). He suddenly can’t look at Lance and his face is burning.

“Uh,” he coughs, “Let me just grab my pillow and a blanket. I’ll sleep on the couch; you can have the bed.”

“What, no! This is your house!”

“You’re the guest I want you to be comfortable. Besides, you’ve been having a shitty streak of luck. Just take the bed.”

“Seriously, Keith, I can’t. Let me sleep on the couch I’m sure it’s comfortable. Besides, it’s late, and you’re the one who’s been putting up with my poor luck when you didn’t need to.”

“Lance, please, take my bed,” Keith is practically pushing Lance into the bedroom at this point. He’d just about die is Lance slept on his cheap ass couch. It’s not comfortable but Keith has been able to fall asleep on it ever since his college years and he’s been dragging it around for nostalgia sake.

Lance plants himself firmly in the doorway, though. Keith meets his eyes and loses his breath-- there’s an intense heat lingering behind the clear blue.

“I, uh, I might have a compromise. We could… share? Your bed, I mean,” and as much as Lance stumbles through the words there’s a solid layer beneath them. A promise. A very clear message that Keith does not have to try hard to read.

They’re so close. Maybe one person length between them.

Keith steps forward to close that length even more. Lance is still, his breathing short and tense. They are both paused.

And then Keith leans forward, hand moving up first, to cradle Lance’s cheek and jaw, and pulling the taller boy towards him as he pulls himself even closer. They are kissing and Lance even moans a little at the heat of it.

Keith guides them into his bedroom.

 

Between

Keith doesn’t know what day it is and doesn’t care. He and Lance strip each other.

Soft skin stroking and cupping and squeezing all the hard and the soft parts of the other. Mouths sucking lightly, then harder, then teeth nipping and pulling gently.

Lance is under him.

Lance is above him.

Kisses everywhere. Keith wants to kiss every single part of Lance. Wants to know him intimately with his mouth and be able to map the man in his dreams.

He worries this has all been a dream.

Lance whispers, asking if this is okay, and Keith answers, in a whisper, too, that yes, yes, please.

First one.

Another.

A third.

Moans: loud and lewd and sweet and full of each other’s names. The world is harsh beyond the bed and they cling to each other and to the blankets with tight fists and scrambling fingers.

They are still facing each other when they become one. Met at the hips. Apart. Met.

Keith’s world is energy becoming more energy becoming a blast of white like an exploding star.

And then darkness and warmth as Lance lays against him, both of them spent, inside and outside.

Soft skin reaching and pulling and wrapping all of the other within. A blanket is tugged around them. Feet tangled together. Hands finding resting spots.

Keith’s face is tucked against Lance’s chest, near the crook of where his neck meets his shoulder. Lance’s breath tickles through Keith’s hair.

They’re sweaty and sticky when they fall asleep, but immeasurably happy.

 

Day 57

It’s bright beyond the window when Keith wakes up. Sometime during the night he had turned away from Lance. He panics for less than a second before he feels the body behind him and the arms wrapping around his chest and the face buried in the nape of his neck. Lance is still here and they’re still tied together as much as they can be.

Keith rolls gently, trying not to wake Lance but wanting to see him desperately.

Too late, apparently, because when they’re face to face he sees that Lance is awake, eyes half-lidded, but staring straight into his own.

“Good morning,” Lance says, hushed.

“Good morning,” Keith’s heart is full to the bursting looking at the other man. Messy hair, bad breath, splotches from sleeping strangely. He’s in love.

Keith traces the skin around Lance’s eyes. There are laugh lines forming; he’d never been close enough to realize that before. Another part of Lance to map. He pulls himself up just enough to kiss those lines and then retreats back into Lance’s warm embrace again. Lance just smiles, seemingly content.

“I need to call work and tell them I won’t be coming in today. Er... and message the rest of the carpool about Kaltenecker,” Lance looks sheepish as he breaks the spell of morning-after.

“I should call, too,” Keith says, watching Lance for a reaction.

He gets the one he wants when Lance leans forward and they share another deep kiss.

Lance, naked, is beautiful, and Keith appreciates the entire view he gets as Lance gets up to dig his phone out of his pocket. There’s a lot of view. But Keith needs to make his own call so he forces himself out and, also naked, goes into the living room where he had left his phone last night. He makes sure to sway his hips a little as he walks, hoping to get Lance’s attention.

The call to work is pretty easy; sick days go through HR and he just leaves them a message, doing his best to sound out of it when, really, he’s never felt better.

When he gets back into his bedroom, though, Lance is sitting on the side of Keith’s bed. He’d pulled his pants back on and Keith feels a bit weird at being stark naked still, so he grabs his own jeans where they’re crumpled on the floor.

“Can we talk about last night?” Lance’s face is heavy.

Keith sits next to Lance on the bed, worried his heart is about to break.

Lance takes a deep breath, “I don’t normally do that. Put out on the first date. Not that it was even a date since you were just picking me up from a Walmart parking lot and all. But, that’s not me. I’m normally not comfortable enough to do that sort of thing with a partner. Keith. Keith, I’ve had this huge crush on you since, like, day one of work, and I’ve been trying to drop hints and I thought you were dropping hints. And I think you were? Well, last night really seems to prove that, huh? I’m really, really happy with last night. It was perfect. And I’d love to have more nights like that. But, Keith? I’d like to have more nights like that with you as your boyfriend. I’m not interested in friends with benefits or just hooking up or anything like that. I want commitment. And, wow, I know I’m dropping all of this on you literally the morning after, but I really, really,  _ really _ like you and want to spend all my time with you. BUT if you say no, if you can’t do that, I also want you to know I don’t regret anything about last night. I never will. Like I said, it was perfect.”

Lance’s face is flushed by the end of his little speech but he keeps their gazes locked. Keith needs to make sure he doesn’t fuck up the response.

“I think I’m in love with you,” he says. Then he claps his hands over his mouth and is absolutely horrified that he actually said that.

Lance’s flush deepens but he takes Keith’s hand, threading their fingers together.

“I think I’m in love with you, too,” he says, gently.

“I’d really, really like to be your boyfriend, Lance.”

Lance pulls Keith in for the kiss and it’s chaste but very, very hot at the same time. A kiss that promises a long time of happiness. Lance pushes Keith back into the bed and Keith hooks his fingers into the waistband of Lance’s pants.

“Can I take these off, now?” he asks when they break apart for a breath.

Lance’s little laugh is answer enough and Keith is tugging them down when Lance stops him for a moment.

“Wait, wait, I need to apologize for something.”

Keith stares at him, confused.

“I, uh, need to apologize for pretty much inviting you to your own bed last night. Um, yeah, it was a weird way for me to do that.”

And then Keith is pulling Lance back against him and when they break apart for air again all he says is:

“Actually, it was pretty hot.”


End file.
